Introducing...our SameYou Advocates
It’s our mission to collaborate with brain injury survivors around the world to raise awareness of the need for rehabilitation.
Stark messages from SameYou's community reveal a huge unmet need, on a global level, outlining there is not enough support for those leaving hospital.
Now, we have teamed up with brain injury survivors - our new SameYou Advocates - who will be working with us to empower people to demand better for their recovery journey, to share important messaging and their own story to inspire others.
All our Advocates know how essential quality, innovative care is for survivors and their families as they negotiate their route back to recovery, and how vital it is to speak out and call for change.
The latest Advocate to join our team is Dan MacQueen, who suffered a devastating hemorrhage. He has spoken of his brain injury story for a Q&A on the SameYou website and says how, one step at a time, he moved forward with his recovery, and he reveals why advocating for better rehabilitation is important to him.
Dan, who is also a motivational speaker, says: “I had a tremendous amount of help to clamber back up and return to a 'normal life'. If you do not have that help, maybe you are not able to stand back up. I try to share the compass NOT the map, to help people navigate their way back to the SameYou. This is all rather simple, but NOT easy to do!”
Also joining the team is Olivia Lewis, 25. She is one of a handful of people in the world to significantly recover from locked-in syndrome caused by a brainstem stroke.
We are also working with Emily Matheny, a brain aneurysm survivor who has a family history of the condition, who aims to spread awareness for prevention. Emily also shares her meditations with the SameYou audience.
Advocate Bella Paige says having better brain injury rehab is ‘monumental’ towards the next part of a survivors’ life. Her podcast, Post Concussion Inc, investigates topics such as learning acceptance, how concussion affects athletes, and she has also featured SameYou’s Jenny Clarke to talk about supporting survivors.
Georgie Hennah, a stroke survivor, has also joined, outlining that everyone is more capable than they realize and, with the right support, it’s possible to live life to the fullest.
Greg Graham, who suffered a hemorrhagic stroke, is also known as the AVM Superhero on social media. After he motivated a friend to move forward with life after a brain injury, Greg realized he had the power to help others and has an Instagram series called “Death Taught Us How to Live”.
Chiara Beer was just two years old and ten months when she suffered a stroke from the chickenpox virus. She is not able to use her right arm and does day-to-day tasks one-handed. She shares advice on her YouTube channel.
See our social platforms and website sameyou.org as we announce new Advocates.